Who is the most iconic Canadian literary character?

Thursday, March 6, 2014 |

Canada Reads may be over, but we know people have CanLit on the brain all year 'round. With this in mind, CBC Books is launching a new campaign to identify the most iconic literary Canadian character ever.

What makes a Canadian character iconic? That's totally up for interpretation. Perhaps a character from Two Solitudes is considered iconic because of the book's own historic status. Or maybe a character from Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town is iconically Canadian because they represent the sense of humour we take such pride in having. As well, does an iconic Canadian character necessarily need to have lived in Canada, like Anne Shirley -- or would some consider Superman, who grew up in the United States, a Canadian character because he was created by Toronto-born Joe Shuster?

UPDATE: Mon., March 17

Thank you very much for your suggestions! We're going to use them to help us narrow down our showdown contenders. Check back later this week to start voting!